//WOOL ALDER DRESS

Hellooo!

This dress has been languishing unworn at the back of my wardrobe since I finished it around 6 weeks ago. Why? Because I’m currently in the midst of 30+ degree days and this dress is made of WOOL. These two variables aren’t particularly well-matched. However, I do like the dress so I’m sure it won’t be long until it gets more use.

When I first spotted this pattern online I was beyond excited. It was completely my style and I’d been half-pie looking for a decent shirtdress pattern for a while. (Don’t you just love when you find a pattern that’s right up your alley?) I set about urgently finding some fabric for it and even spent my lunch break cutting out and cello-taping the pattern together such was my keenness! 

I initially used a cheap navy wool-mix suiting-type fabric but I slowly came to realise this wasn’t the best choice for the gathered version as it was too stiff. I’d also just inherited an unfamiliar sewing machine which was uncooperative in the topstitching and left puckered seams. I couldn’t bring myself to finish it knowing I’d never wear something with such ugly seams.

A month or so after this failure I picked up this wool gauze (I think?) fabric at the Fabric Store’s bi-annual sale and immediately designated it as an Alder. In fairness, there’s probably more appropriate garments for this wool gauze but I had Alders on the mind! Plus, I loved the weight and pattern of the fabric.

Sewing

In terms of sewing, it was fairly straightforward but a bit more time-consuming than most of my sewing projects are. I decided early on that the gauze was on the wrong side of opaque and needed lining (cotton gauze? From the Fabric Store also), so basically sewed a whole other body of the dress (sans collar and pocket) and attached it under the collar stand, yoke, and button stands. I was also a bit tardy because I took my time and basted the pockets, collar etc. first to make sure they were perfect before topstitching, but I think this paid off.

The fabric was lovely to work with, and although it’s fairly loosely woven it didn’t cause me any grief. I was terrified about the buttonholes going into this because I’ve never had much luck with them in the past – mainly due to the machines I was using – and this required a whole TEN. However with the help of an automatic buttonhole foot and about 27 practice buttonholes it came out fine!

The pattern instructions were really easy to follow and the diagrams helpful! I drafted a smaller lining for the skirt with less fullness, but didn’t change anything else about the pattern. I cut a size 4 and although I’m pretty happy with the relaxed fit I may even go down to a size 2 (or make the bodice a tighter fit) next time because there is a bit of wriggle-room to do so!

Yay vs Nay

Yay

• The biggest yay has to be the buttons. I picked up a bag of exactly the number and type I needed for a mere 30 cents in an op shop. It wasn’t until afterwards I looked closely at the bag and noticed it was meant to be $3.00. Oops.
• In general I really love the design. Jen’s done a great job making it flattering, and I think it would suit most body shapes between the two versions. I love the tailored collar, yoke etc contrasting with the gathered skirt and scooped hem. (I’ve always been a sucker for a good gathered skirt).

Nay

• I guess all I have to say in the nay column is that the fabric I chose isn’t exactly year-round suitable (at least not in my climate). So while the pattern is relatively summery, the fabric is suited to winter. 

Ahh well, it’ll been cold before too long. In the meantime - is it time for a summery linen version?

//PATTERN MAGIC KNOT DRESS

One day last November I was perusing the sewing section of my local library when I came across Tomoko Nakamichi’s Pattern Magic. I’d seen this book reviewed here and there on the internet, and while the diagrams looked somewhat intimidating I got it out anyway.

The ‘Knot dress’ (I prefer ‘bow') immediately stood out to me; it was something I would actually wear, as opposed to some of the more, er, avant garde designs in the book.

And so this dress was born!

Pattern

This pattern was actually pretty simple once I read through the book and familiarised myself with the diagrams and what they actually meant. I’d assumed that I would have to use my own block until I saw the one at the back of the book which I photocopied and traced. This essentially made the whole process patternmaking-by-numbers if you will; starting with their block and moving the lines a few centimetres at certain points, and extending these lines out into a dress length.

Source

The bodice was slash and spread to create space for the tube which the bow is tied from. It was a little fiddly trying to make the gaps even and then trace around them.

I stuck to the pattern in the book except for a few changes:

1. I added around 3cm to the length of the bow tube
2. I didn’t add the small pleats at the back of the dress as I thought it would be better without
3. I shortened the length to one I’m more comfortable with (I think I took off around 10cms)
4. I straightened the bottom hem
5. Once I put the dress on I decided to take some fabric out of the sides as it was a bit billowy for my liking. I think I took off around 7cms from each side, which gave it a more A-line shape.

Pleat-less back of the dress

Sewing

The instructions in the book for sewing the dress consist of literally one line:

“Sew the bow section into a tubular shape up to point c”

This left me slightly confused. A bit of playing around and this explanation helped. The base of the tube has a tricky curve to get around and I handsewed this together first as it looked impossible to do with only pins, machine stitched it, and then I was away! The rest of the dress was pretty straightforward to put together.

Exposed zip and shoulder darts

Finishing

I used some binding I’d made a while ago for the armholes and neckline, and an old zip I had lying around for an exposed zip at the back. For the hem, I overlocked the edge, folded it up 3.5cms and stitched it. I didn’t want to add any stiffness by double folding the hem.

Yay vs Nay

Yay

• The shape of the dress is really flattering. The bow over the bust adds detail while the rest of the dress skims the hips and comes out to an A-line shape. The pleat is also handy; it gives extra move-ability and is pretty cute!
• The biggest yay for me about the dress is the fabric I used. Formerly a $6 duvet cover, I suspect it’s mainly polyester with a little cotton. This was partially intended as wearable muslin but because it turned out so well it’s been upgraded straight to a regular wearable dress! Using a duvet cover for the fabric of this was also really useful because the pattern requires heeeaps of fabric if you opt to have the bow tube all-in-one with the bodice as in the book (as opposed to a separate pattern piece).

My "crisp" bow

Nay

• My bow came out nothing like the picture in the book. It was limp and sad so I had to tack it in place to keep it looking crisp!
• I know that Pattern Magic is primarily for patternmaking, but more detailed sewing instructions would have been handy, especially since the sewing method isn’t totally intuitive.
• The fabric attracts cat hair like metal to a magnet. I’ve had to invest in some sticky lint removers exclusively for this dress!

Wearability

Overall, I'm really happy with how this dress turned out. I wear it relatively often, and the old canbedressedupordown rule applies!

I've made a list of other things I want to make out of the book, including another bow themed top, the intriguing deppari shirt, and another version of this dress in actual dress fabric.